The invention was made in the course of an award or grant from the Arthritis Foundation and the National Institutes of Health, and the United States government, therefore, has rights in this invention.
This invention relates to monoclonal antibodies and related antigens, and specifically to monoclonal antibodies to intracellular antigens in lymphocytes.
Monoclonal antibodies reactive with T cell surface molecules have been instrumental in defining phenotypic and functional heterogeneity in peripheral blood lymphocyte populations. The surface markers designated CD4 and CD8 have been shown to define cells possessing helper/inducer and cytotoxic/suppressor functions, respectively. Both CD4.sup.+ and CD8.sup.+ lymphocytes express intracellular effector molecules that are released in response to specific activating stimuli. In CD4.sup.+ helper cells, these effectors are lymphokines such as IL-2, IL-4 and IFN-.gamma.. Although CD8.sup.+ cytolytic cells can also produce lymphokines, they are characterized by their inclusion of cytoplasmic granules containing putative cytolytic effector molecules such as perforin, serine proteases, and proteoglycans. Target cell recognition is accompanied by the secretion of these intracellular effectors.